Iran withdraws support for Assad - WSJ
Illustrative photo: Iran has not sent Bashar al-Assad its weapons (Getty Images)
The Iranian government refused to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in battles against rebel forces, fearing retaliation from Israel, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The unnamed Syrian officials revealed that Iran blamed Assad for failing to prepare for the rebel offensive.
An Iranian aircraft carrying aid for Syria reportedly had to turn back after takeoff due to the threat of Israeli airstrikes.
Sources told WSJ that instead of providing assistance, Iran ordered its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated militias to abstain from the conflict. Tehran subsequently organized the withdrawal of its troops from Syria and arranged the transfer of control over territories to rebel forces.
Lina Khatib, a Middle East security expert and an associate fellow at Chatham House, stated that both Russia and the majority of the Syrian regime, including senior political and military figures, had acknowledged that Assad's inner circle is a sinking ship.
Israeli strikes in Syria
Earlier reports revealed that Israel launched airstrikes targeting weapon storage facilities in Syria following the fall of Assad's regime.
One primary objective was to prevent strategic weapons from falling into the hands of groups hostile to Israel.
